Feeding device for bottle capping machines



E. A. HEY.

FEEDING DEVlCE FOR BOTTLE CAPP|NG MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 1. i917.

1 ,3 1 1 ,892. Patented Aug. 5, 1912).

Z SHEETSSHET 1.

' s attorney,

E. A. H-EY.

FEEDING DEVICE FOR BOTTLE CAPPINU MACHINES.

APPLICAHON mu) SEPI'. 1. IBM.

1,31 1 ,892. l'utmtcd Aug. 5, 1919. c 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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9 za k I if 26 UNITED STATESMPATENT OFFICE.

EDMUN'D A. HEY, OF LA GRANGE, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE WILLIAMS SEALING CORPORATION, OF WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTI- OUT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

FEEDING DEVICE FOR BOTTLE-CAIPPING MACHINES.

Patented Aug. 5, 1919.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that EDMUND A. HEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at La Grange, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, has invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Feeding Devices for Bottle-Capping Machines, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates generally to bottle capping machines and more particularly to what is known as a semi-automatic bottle capping machine, that is, one in which the caps are manually directed during the operation of their delivery, while the remainder of the operations upon said cap are entirely automatic.

The invention furthermore relates to a bottle cappin machine of the kind described which is used for the purpose of securing bottle caps provided with a fastening lever. This particular invention relates to the feeding of, the caps to the machine, the object belng to render the feeding operation faster and at the same time eliminate, as far as possible the actual handling of the cap by the operator, thereby rendering the capping and sealing operation entirely sanitary.

With these objects in view, and certain other objects which will appear as the description roceeds, the invention consists primarily in providing a, combined guiding and suspending chute through which the cap passes, and at the end of which it is held in proper position to be engaged by a bottle and carried into operative position with the chuck which is provided with means for operating upon the cap for fastening the same upon the bottle.

The invention consists also in certain details of construction and combination, hereinafter fully described and pointed out in the appended, claims.

In the drawings forming a, part of this specification, I have shown one embodiment of my invention and in WlllCll Figure 1 1s a side view of a semi-automatic bottle capping machine provided with my novel construction of cap delivery chute. Fig. 2 is a. top plan view of said chute. Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the same and Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of said chute and Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of the chuck head.

In the drawings 10 indicates the standard of the bottle capping machine and 11 is the movable support upon which the bottle 12 is adapted to rest. 13 is a chuck carried at the end of the rod 14 said chuck and rod being guided in the standard. This chuck is rovided with a shaft turning device which constitutes no part of the present invention.

The caps used in connection wtih this machine are made of sheet metal and have a depending skirt surrounded by a ring which is expanded and contracted by means of a lever, this lever being operated by the machine after the bottle has been inserted in the cap. This capping operation can be accomplished either by hand or by machinery and in the semi-automatic machines heretofore employed the cap has been placed by hand upon the bottle after said bottle was placed upon the movable support and then y moving the bottle upwardly into engagement with the chuck the lever operatlng mechanism was put; in motion and the cap fastened upon the bottle.

Under that method the caps were picked up and handled by the operator and consequently the sealing operation was more or less unsanitary.

With the idea of eliminating all actual handling of the cap I have devised the pres ent means which may be described as consisting of a hopper 15 into which caps are dumped in bulk, said hopper being open at one side and provided with an inclined bottom 16 so that the caps dumped therein will be discharged upon a table 17 having an inclined ledge 18 at the forward end thereof.

Adjacent this table 17 is a combined guide and delivery chute 19, the upper end of said chute being in horizontal alinement with the table 17 and ledge 18 so that the caps delivered to the table from the chute can be pushed over into the chute 19 and directed toward the chuck 13.

The chute 19 has sides 20 and 21 and to which are attached guide flanges 22 and 23, the flange 22 being somewhat shorter than the flange 23. as most clearly shown, in order to permit the caps to be readily pushed from the table and lodge into the chute, and it will be noted that these flanges 22 and 23 are spaced slightly apart providing a slot 24 which serves as a guide for the lever of the cap.

When the caps are dumped into the hopper they have their locking levers turned up to the opened position and these caps when pushed from the table 17 and ledge '18 into the chute 19 have their open side down and slide bygravity to the end of (the chute, the lever extending upwardly through the slot 24.

The chute is held by a brace 25 or any other suitable means so that its lower end will be adjacent to the lower end of the chuck l3 and it will be noted that this chuck has a forwardly projecting lip 26 slotted centrally at 27, and the slot 2 10f the chute is in alinement with this slot 27.

Inwardly converging fingers 28 are attached to the sides of the chute, as shown, and extend toward each other and also project slightly beyond the extreme end of the chute. These converging fingers 28 extend close to and are in alinement with the notch 27 of the forwardly projecting lip. These fingers are so positioned with reference to both the chuck and the chute that the cap will pass nearly but not entirely out of the chute, the upwardly projecting lever engaging the inwardly projecting fingers and thereby holding the cap suspended at the end of the chute with the open side of the cap downward.

It will thus be seen that the caps dumped in bulk into the hopper 15 will pass-readily to the table 17 where the operator can quickly and easily direct them into the chute without handling the same to any appreci- Y able extent and so far as the interior lining or packing of the cap is concerned it will never be necessary for the operator to touch the same.

After a cap has been fed through the chute and held in suspension at the end of the same, the operator places the bottle 12 upon the support 11 and in doing so inserts the mouth of the bottle into the cap, stripping it from the suspending fingers and carrying it into operative "relation with the chuck, the upwardly extending lever entering the notch 27 and then as the support 11 moves upwardly the lever turning mechanism carried by the chuck operates upon the same and completes the fastening operation.

The rapidity with which caps can be ap plied to the bottles is also materially increased.

Having thus described my invention what 4 I claim is 1. The combination with a chuck, of a chute supported therefrom and inclined.

downwardly toward said chuck, the lower end of said chute to said chuck, said chute having'a central guiding slot, and converging supporting fingers attached to the chute and and extending beyond the lower end of same, said fingers approaching each other in line with said uiding slot.

2. The combination with a hopper, of a table upon which said hopper discharges, said table having an inclined ledge, a chute in communication with'said ledge and comprising a bottom, sides,'and inwardly projecting flanges so positioned as to provide a central guiding slot, supporting fingers attached to said chute, said fingers extending beyond the lower end of said chute and converging, the extreme ends of said fingers approaching each other in line with said guiding slot.

3. In a device for delivering caps having being in close proximity an upwardly projecting lever, the combinathe same, said fingers converging and approaching each other sufficient to receive therebetween the upwardly projecting lever as it emerges from the guiding slot.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto aflix my signature.

EDMUND A. HEY. 

